Savannah Duo Triumphs At Golden Gloves

By Edward DeVita

        Freeze and Beecher returned home as Golden Gloves Champions.

On March 16-17, years of hard work and dedication paid off for two Savannah fighters, Holden Freeze and Robert Beecher as they took part in the Georgia Golden Gloves tournament and came away as champions by winning their respective divisions.

“These guys have been busting their butts getting ready for this tournament,” said Muhsin Corbbrey, owner of Champions Training Facility where the pair trains seven days a week for up to four hours a day. “They both have worked really hard and put in the time, energy and sweat and they came away with the coveted Golden Gloves Championship. That’s a great step in their development as fighters.”

While the duo emerged victorious by winning both of their respective three round fights, both boxers arrived at their championships following slightly different paths. The 32 year old Beecher, who stands at 6’5” 165 pounds, started boxing in May of 2008 and had four fights before Golden Gloves.

“I was really prepared for this event,” said Beecher. “When you have the best coaches, sparring partners and training partners like I have here it gives you an advantage. It makes the actual fights that much easier, even if I have a tendency to make things harder than they should be sometimes for myself in the ring.”

                In the championship fight Beecher was pushed to the limit but the Champions Fighter was more than ready for the challenge.

                “He just kept coming at me,” grinned Beecher, who won both of his fights by decision. “After all of the work I had put in here at Champions though, I kind of knew what to expect. He didn’t do anything that I had not seen before countless times when I was training so I was able to counter what he was doing and win the fight.”

The Duo Had Strong Coaches in Their Corners Including Corbbrey, Bell and Jones

Things were a little different for Freeze. Even though he had been training for five years, the 6’3”, 150 pound twenty-two year old would be stepping into the ring for the first time at the Golden Gloves.

“These were my first organized fights and so, to me my first fight was like a movie, “recalled Freeze. “Just walking to the center ring before the fight for the handshake was almost surreal. Then, I got in there and got worked on. After that it was a lot of fun, especially at the end winning. It was really fulfilling to realize that all of that hard work had paid off and that I was able to push myself and win.”

Like Beecher, Freeze credited his work and preparation that he received at Champions for his success in Marietta.

“The training that I received at champions helped immensely with my skills as well as my confidence,” said Freeze. “I had been in the ring with pros like Muhsin and Norman Jones training every day here at Champions. These are world-class fighters. So when I got to the Golden Gloves, I knew that anything that came at me could not be better than what I have seen every day in the gym. Once that sank in, it was easy to remain focused and confident.”

                He also remained powerful, winning his first fight by TKO in the second round and then followed that up in his next fight by winning the Golden Gloves Championship by TKO in the third round. He now hopes to fight as often as possible in the hopes of earning a shot to compete at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

                “Both of these men are exceptional fighters,” explained Champions trainer Frank Bell. “They are both strong, tall and rangy and are also great athletes. They bring a tremendous amount of energy with them every day when they come here to work. They have become multi-dimensional fighters and are progressing quite well.”

                “Holden is really a special kid,” said Bell. “He works really hard and his attitude is great. He has the potential to go as far as he wants to go. Literally, the sky’s the limit for this kid.”

                “Robert is a little older and the Olympics are also a goal for him,” continued Bell. “He’s ranked sixth in the MMA in the state as an amateur so he has the skills to take the next step.”

                “They are both very skilled fighters who have come a long way,” added fellow trainer Norman Jones. “I think that they were well conditioned and very well trained. They just needed to go up there and show what they could do and not get overwhelmed by the big show and they did that. I was very impressed with how they performed.”

It's the Rangers vs. Phillies! Our 2012 Major League Baseball Predictions

Jimmy Rollins will lead a veteran Phillies team back to the World Series. 
Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly

By Edward DeVita

            Well, baseball fans, it is that time of year again. The temperature is rising and the best baseball players from around the world are headed to either the Arizona desert or the Sunshine State of Florida in order to begin the Major League Spring Training season.

That means it is time for me to give you our 2012 Major League Baseball predictions.

While the addition of the second wild card team in place to create a one game playoff “play-in” game may end up causing more havoc than it helps fan interest, it also makes one stop momentarily when it comes to predicting who will win and who is in the postseason picture. If last season was any indication, 2012 should be another summer long thrill ride.

On that note, here we go, as always, division by division. Let’s begin with the American League.

American League East – Every season it seems like this is the tightest and best division in baseball, and it still just keeps on getting better and better. With age finally creeping up on the New York Yankees, manager Joe Girardi will turn to a suddenly loaded pitching staff to hold off the Red Sox and Rays, both of which will be ready for a playoff run of their own. The emergence of Ivan Nova and the insertion of Hiroki Kuroda and Michael Pineda into the Yankees rotation, alongside C.C. Sabathia, will allow the Yankees to beat you with pitching, even though no other team in baseball hits as many home runs as the Bronx Bombers did a year ago. In Boston, new manager Bobby Valentine will keep the Red Sox breathing on the Yankees heels, that is until they are overtaken by the Rays, once again, as Tampa claims a wild card berth. The Orioles and Blue Jays, while improved, have no chance in this formidable division. Order of finish: Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Orioles. Wild Card: Rays.

   American Central League – What used to be an exciting and hotly contested division now firmly belongs to the Detroit Tigers. In addition to having Cy Young and MVP winner Justin Verlander, the Tigers now boast the big bat of Prince Fielder to go along with Miguel Cabrera. If you pooled the best players from the rest of the division, the Tigers would probably still win a best of seven series. The Twins and White Sox will make some noise early, but by Mid-July this race will be over. Not even an additional wild card will be good enough for a team from this division to punch a postseason ticket. Order of finish: Tigers, White Sox, Indians, Twins, Royals.

American League West – Talk about a division race. The Rangers and Angels will be locked in mortal combat from start to finish, even though the second wild card berth will insure that both of these teams make the playoffs. Twice last season the Rangers were a single strike away from winning the World Series, and even though pitcher C.J. Wilson left Texas for their rivals in California, Texas will be fired up and ready to go from Opening Day. Texas replaced Wilson with the electrifying Yu Darvish, who is poised to become a superstar. Even though the Angels added slugger Albert Pujols to their club, the Rangers still have the most powerful lineup in baseball. Keep an eye on the rejuvenated Oakland A’s, who have a ton of talented young players, including the athletic center fielder Yoenis Crespedes from Cuba, as they attempt (successfully) to surprise the league and wrestle away the second wild card berth. Order of finish: Rangers, A’s, Angels, Mariners. Wild card: A’s.


Curtis Granderson and the Yankees will once again be in the playoff hunt.
Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly

The Unthinkable: Tim Tebow Goes To The New York Jets



Photo by Edward DeVita/The Savannah Sports Monthly

          By Edward DeVita



What a week it has been for NFL fans.

If you had asked anyone a year ago where the league would be today, they would have the same odds of getting these recent roster moves right as they would if they had filled out a perfect NCAA tournament bracket.

Impossible.

Now, within a week, Peyton Manning has been jettisoned from the Indianapolis Colts and has subsequently signed on to be the new quarterback of the Denver Broncos and last season’s hero Tim Tebow has been traded to above all places, the New York Jets.

For Manning to head west was a surprise in itself, especially when the Tennessee Titans began to woo the quarterback like a high school junior would attempt to convince the Homecoming Queen to be his date for the prom. With Titans fans, coaches and ownership promising everything from pancakes for life to an ownership stake in the team after he retired, the stage seemed set for Manning to return to his college roots and in a sense “come back home” to Tennessee.

But he politely said no.

Observers thought that the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins or the San Francisco 49ers were in the mix ahead of the Broncos who had evident pluses and minuses to their case. On the positive side, Denver had a winning tradition, a great running game and defense and Hall of Famer John Elway at the helm as the team’s president. On the negative side, they had Tim Tebow. One day after signing Manning, Elway took care of the “negative” element by trading the former University of Florida quarterback to the New York Jets for a fourth round draft pick.

Tebow a negative? That still stuns me.

It’s like in the movie The Princess Bride where Diego Montoya says, “I don’t think that word means what you think it means.” All Tebow did was rescued a doomed 1-5 season to lead the Broncos to the playoffs and win a game in the postseason. He brought the locker room together. He sold a staggering number of jerseys. He was popular. Specifically, he suddenly became more popular in Denver than the legendary John Elway. Elway never liked Tebow’s style of play, even though it produced wins. Somehow, this humble kid from Florida had come into Elway’s town and become the new hero. Fans demanded that Tebow play with passion that had never been seen before. No matter what he did, Tebow was the guy that Broncos fans wanted to see. What’s negative about that? Don’t you want to have players on your roster that are popular? When you think of a negative element on a football team you can say names like Pacman Jones and Albert Haynesworth and maybe even Terrell Owens or Chad Ocho Cinco but Tim Tebow? All he did was remain positive and win games.

Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly

And that led to him being shipped to the Jets.

If Elway wanted to divest himself of this problem, he had to bring in a big fish or face a historic backlash and Peyton Manning is the mother of all big fish. By bringing in someone of Manning’s stature, Elway could cut ties with Tebow and still not look bad. In fact, he could take a step back towards being Denver’s favorite son. At his introductory press conference, Manning stated that if Tebow were on the team that he would be a “great teammate to him” and that he respected Tebow as a person and a player. That remark would seem to indicate that the team was still unsure of what they would do with Tebow a few who were there noticed that all of the action photos of Tebow that adorned the Broncos facility had already been taken down, even though the quarterback would not be traded until the next day.

That brings us to Tebow. Through no fault of his own, he walks into perhaps the biggest powder keg in all of sports as a newest member of the brash New York Jets. This environment is hardly a walk in the park. Head coach Rex Ryan is at the top of his class when it comes to the colorful use of profanity and he wields it within a divided locker room that melted down at the end of last season. Tebow’s arrival could potentially make that locker room division even worse. Jets defensive back Antonio Cromartie tweeted hours before the Jets acquired Tebow that the team “didn’t need him” and that they should leave Tebow alone. Now they are teammates.

That should make the newest Jet feel welcome.

This scene gets even worse. The Jets have a quarterback in Mark Sanchez who is not exactly beloved in New York despite leading the Jets to the AFC title game in two of his first three seasons in the NFL (interestingly neither Peyton nor Eli Manning did that). Now the moment that Sanchez happens to throw back to back incompletions next season, Sanchez will have the thrill of hearing the bloodthirsty cry of rabid Jets fans clamoring for Tebow to take his place under center. Talk about adding even more pressure on Sanchez and the Jets. All he has done, like Tebow ironically, is conduct himself with class and win football games.

It seems like a no-win situation for everyone involved and it’s a shame. As a lifetime Jets fan, I am glad the team picked up Tebow. I think that he can help them win some games. As a fan of Tim Tebow, I am sad for him to end up in New York. I would have liked to have seen him come to Jacksonville, where hard working local heroes can be appropriately appreciated within a sold out stadium of teal wearing Jaguars fans.

Local Fighter Ready for His Title Shot

Photo by Edward DeVita/The Savannah Sports Monthly

By Edward DeVita

When an athlete truly loves a sport, there is literally nothing that he or she will do to test themselves and see just how good that they can be. It doesn’t matter the cost, the work or the pain and sweat, for these athletes it is about the competition. It is a chance to see where they stand and to push themselves to the limit and then survey the horizon.

Muhsin Corbbrey is that type of athlete.

The owner of Champions Training Center in Savannah, Corbbrey has fought and held championship titles in virtually every licensed organization except one – the UFC. At age 33, he aims to add that to his list.

“The thing is that I have fought everywhere,” explained Corbbrey who has fought in the WEC among others. “You name it, I’ve done it. The UFC is like the last frontier for me. It’s also where the big boys are. I am at a point in my life where I want to test myself against the best people in the world and so just how good I can be. This is a challenge that I am eagerly entering into.”

“I have a fight coming up in early February against Ludwig Salazar in Panama and in that fight I am looking forward to getting on track to the UFC,” said Corbbrey. “This is the first step to getting back into the UFC. My opponent in a tough guy, he has been in and won a ton of fights so this will be a challenge for me but a good challenge in that it will give me an indication of where I am at. Of course, my plan is to put him away in the first two rounds.”



Photo by Edward DeVita
The Savannah Sports Monthly

“This will give me the chance to South America which is a place that I have never been,” said Corbbrey. “I have been to Asia, Canada and seemingly everywhere in between but not to South America. It will be nice to have the opportunity to see something new.”

In addition to with running Champions Training Center, Corbbrey is training three times a day in order to maximize his conditioning and strength. In each of the three 90 minute workouts each day, Corbbrey endures an intense mixture of fighting and training that would leave lesser competitors longing for a break. For this budding champion however, the work is something that he simply can’t get enough of.


 

Why Jacksonville is the Perfect Place for Peyton Manning

Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly

By Edward DeVita

It has often been said that sports imitates life. For every time there is a storybook ending that captivates us and makes us stop and take notice, there is a series of events or a story that leaves sports fans shaking their heads and wondering aloud, “How could that happen.”

As the NFL enters its offseason, one of the leagues’s most accomplished and recognizable athletes enters what can only be described as a life changing storm. For more than a decade, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning has been synonymous with the blue horseshoe on his helmet. Once a moribund franchise with little or no real identity, Manning rescued the team from the scrap heap and single handedly turned them into a consistent winner. He had always said that he wanted to be like John Elway and have the privilege of playing his entire career for only one team.  Now a myriad of circumstances have all converged in such a way as to make that all seem impossible. Four neck surgeries and a missed 2011 season, the Colts “earning” the number one draft pick, this season that means the acquisition of Stanford All World quarterback Andrew Luck, and a $28 million roster bonus that is due to Manning on March 6. Add it all up with a dose of Colts owner Jim Irsay letting go all coaches and executives from the General Manager on down and what you get is the very real scenario that Peyton Manning, if he can play at all in 2012, will be doing so for another organization .

Now that’s where the fun begins. For the next several months, sportscasters will be filing their two cents worth as to where this future Hall of Famer will be headed when training camps open. Some teams are already at the forefront of the speculative storm, but one, and perhaps the best possible fit is not being mentioned at all – the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s take a look at some of the variables that will have to be considered before Peyton takes his winning ways to any team’s training camp.  First of all, Manning will have to go to an organization that will let him run the show offensively as the starting quarterback. Peyton is not coming to be a backup to anyone. He would like to go to a team on the rise. Also, warm weather and some offensive weapons would be a plus. If a team has all of these going for them, then you have a good chance at landing the biggest offseason prize in the history of the NFL.

In order to get a solid reading as to where Manning will go, and why Jacksonville is the perfect choice, we should take a look at the scenario team by team and compare the possibilities. The first rumor that will be dispelled is that 20 teams will be lining up to make a run at Manning. As you will see, that is simply not the case.



Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly



In the NFC South, the Saints (Drew Brees), Falcons (Matt Ryan) and Panthers (Cam Newton) are all set at the position. The Buccaneers do have a new coach, but also have a young quarterback in Josh Freeman that some are very high on. The biggest drawback for Manning is that the division is loaded and that Tampa Bay has little or no weapons on the offensive side of the football. Mark Tampa Bay as a maybe, but not a frontrunner.

The same type of scene unfolds in the NFC North where some of the best quarterbacks in the league already reside. The Packers have Aaron Rodgers, the Bears have Jay Cutler and the Lions have Matthew Stafford so all of these franchises can also be crossed off of the list. The only possible suitor for Manning in this division is the Minnesota Vikings. What makes this doubtful is that they have a young quarterback in Christian Ponder who made tremendous strides last season. Also in their favor is Pro Bowl running back Adrian Peterson. They also play indoors, not only for their home games, but also in division games in Detroit. Count them ahead of the Buccaneers, but this division is even tougher than the NFC South and Manning does not have the time left in his career to start at the bottom and work his way up.

The NFC West has some legitimate fits for Manning with only the Rams (Sam Bradford) being quickly taken off of the list. The Seahawks need a quarterback, but the weather would be atrocious and there is nothing there on the offensive side of the ball. Also, it would be unlikely that Coach Pete Carroll would turn everything on offense over to Manning. The 49ers are a dark horse possibility, simply because everyone always seems divided on Alex Smith, even though he just led San Francisco the NFC title game.

That leaves the Cardinals, who have just been burned by Kevin Kolb, who simply did not pan out as a free agent pick up last season. They play indoors. They have a stout defense and numerous weapons including wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald already in place. The division is also easily winnable. In addition, Arizona just signed coach and former quarterback Frank Reich to the coaching staff. This is significant because Reich just spent six seasons as Manning’s quarterback coach with the Colts. All of these points vault the Cardinals to the top of the Manning sweepstakes list.

There does not seem to be a fit at all in the NFC East. There is no fit for Manning with the Cowboys (Tony Romo), the Eagles (Michael Vick) or the Giants, where little brother Eli just earned his second Super Bowl ring. Some have speculated on the Washington Redskins, but there seems to be very little reason for Peyton to go there. First of all, the organization is a mess and the team has no playmakers on the offensive side of the ball. The division is loaded and playing for Washington will mean a large number of games in bad weather stadiums. It is also unlikely that Peyton would volunteer to step directly onto his brother’s turf.

In the AFC, we see more of the same. Beginning with the East, we can quickly rule out the Patriots, who have one of the best in Tom Brady. The Bills can be eliminated even though they do have some players on offense to make them an interesting possibility. The division is too tough, the weather is too bad, and the Bills just gave quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick a ton of money. Some have said the Dolphins are a good fit, which is a team that does need a quarterback. Offensively, Miami just seems inferior, and while one can argue that bringing in Manning will change that, the fact remains that Peyton will have to try and overrun Brady and Company in New England as a division rival every year. That, in itself, may keep Manning out of South Florida.

Since Manning’s potential departure from Indianapolis first became a possibility, rumors began that he would be headed to the Meadowlands as a New York Jet. While this may be nice to think about, it just doesn’t make sense. First of all, the Jets do have a young quarterback in Mark Sanchez that did take New York to the AFC Championship Game in his first two seasons. With the Santonio Holmes meltdown and the disarray in the locker room, the team is totally dysfunctional. The weather is also bad and he would be sharing the New York spotlight (as well as the same stadium) with Eli, both of which work against Peyton donning Gang Green. Besides that, the salary cap situation with the Jets is in terrible shape.  Could you really envision Peyton Manning playing for Rex Ryan?

The AFC North has little room for Manning as well. The Steelers (Ben Roethlisberger), Bengals (Andy Dalton) and Ravens (Joe Flacco) are set at quarterback, although the Ravens could emerge as a candidate for Manning’s services. True, they have a slew of bad weather games, but they have a formidable defense, a strong running game and a coach that would be willing to turn the keys over to Manning. The only question is how sold is the team on Joe Flacco (translation: Who does Ray Lewis want to share his last few seasons with?). Keep an eye on this one.

That leaves the Browns, who have Colt McCoy at quarterback. The team does have some possibilities as a Manning suitor, but I just don’t see him starting at the bottom of the division in Cleveland.

In the AFC West, the Chargers (Philip Rivers) and the Raiders (Carson Palmer) seem to be out. The Broncos already have all the craziness that they can handle with the Tim Tebow phenomenon and adding Manning to that mix will only make Denver spontaneously combust. That leaves the Chiefs, who have a lot of talent on their roster. Even though Matt Cassel and Kyle Orton are on the roster, Manning would be a huge upgrade in a winnable division with a fantastic fan base. If the move was good enough for Joe Montana when he was cut loose by the 49ers, then it may be good enough for Peyton Manning as well.

Photo by Patricia Huisinga/The Savannah Sports Monthly

Our 2010 MLB Predictions

Baseball is once again alive and well in Atlanta.
After a series of seasons that saw the Braves staring at the playoffs from the outside, the 2010 campaign has all the makings of a special summer at Turner Field. The team is talented, energetic and highly motivated, perhaps more so than any team in baseball, and seems primed to make a run deep into the postseason.
If there was ever a team that had something to play for, it’s the Braves, who want nothing more than to reward manager Bobby Cox with a taste of championship champagne one more time. After 24 years and 2,413 wins as a manager (2,058 with Atlanta) Cox announced that he will retire at the end of the season. Cox piloted the Braves to an unheard of 13 consecutive division titles and brought a winning attitude to the organization. During that run, beginning with the miraculous worst-to-first season of 1991, the Braves advanced to the World Series in 1992, 1995, 1996 and 1999 and captured the World Series championship in 1995.
It’s been a long time since the Braves have danced on that October stage, and it is one they would love nothing more than to do this season. Third baseman Chipper Jones, who has played under Cox since 1993, remarked during spring training that his goal was to send his manager out in style, also adding that Cox was the only big-league manager that he has ever known and that it would be difficult to suit up for someone else. The sentiment is there and fortunately for Atlanta, so is the talent.
Just as they did during the 1990’s, the 2010 Braves are led by a tremendous pitching staff. Derek Lowe, Jair Jurjjens and Tommy Hanson give Atlanta three top of the line starting pitchers, while the bullpen, a longtime achilles heel for the Braves, has their first legitimate lights-out closer since Mark Wohlers, in flame-thrower Billy Wagner. With that kind of talent on the mound, Atlanta knows that they have an opportunity to win every night.
In addition to the emotional charge of Cox’s swan song, the Braves also received a potent shot of adrenaline from the arrival of rookie phenom Jason Heyward. Heyward began hitting lasers in spring training and has simply never stopped, and in the process, has electrified an often stale clubhouse with his seemingly limitless potential. Never has a city, or Major League Baseball for that matter, buzzed about the possibilities of a rookie outfielder since Darryl Strawberry took New York by storm in the summer of 1983. When you add all the ingredients together, it makes for a fun-filled summer in Atlanta.
With that in mind, here are my 2010 baseball predictions:
NL East – The Braves will be better and will make the playoffs, but the National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies are simply too deep. The addition of Cy Young winner Roy Halliday gives the team an amazing edge in a division that is beginning to see some separation. Order of finish: Phillies, Braves, Mets, Nationals, Marlins.
NL Central – Is this the year of the Cubs? While they seem to have lost a little bit of their identity, their pitching is better and the team appears hungry and poised to make a run at the Cardinals, who will be in the middle of the race from beginning to end. The Reds and Pirates will also be better, making this a tough division to call. Order of finish: Cubs, Cardinals, Reds, Brewers, Pirates and Astros.
NL West – The Dodgers get the glory, but the San Francisco Giants have quietly corralled the pitching boasting Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Barry Zito at the front end of their rotation. While the Rockies and the Diamondbacks have also improved, by midsummer it will be a two-team race. Order of finish: Giants, Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Rockies and Padres.
Wild Card winner: Braves.
NL Championship: Braves over Phillies.
AL East – This discussion starts and stops with the New York Yankees. The best in the game got better with the addition of outfielder Curtis Granderson and no team in baseball has the leadership that Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte provide the Yankees. Order of finish: Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, Blue Jays and Orioles.
AL Central – This has become one of the toughest divisions in baseball, with a logjam of teams butting heads with each other every night. Minnesota has a talented team, the game’s best catcher and league MVP in Joe Mauer and a brand-new outdoor stadium all of which spell division championship for the Twins. Order of finish: Twins, Tigers, White Sox, Royals and Indians.
AL West – This division is curious to say the least, as each team seems to have improved. Even the Angels, who have appeared to have lost everyone of value from last season’s club, added World Series MVP Hideki Matsui from the Yankees. Keep an eye on Seattle, where Ken Griffey returns for another year. Conventional wisdom says that he would not have come back if he did not feel that his team had the horses to charge into the postseason. I tend to believe him. Order of finish: Mariners, Rangers, Angels, A’s.
Wild Card winner: Tigers.
AL Championship: Yankees over Twins.
World Series: Yankees over Braves 4-2. The Braves send Bobby Cox out with a World Series appearance, but the Yankees will be too talented to be denied their second straight championship - unless the rookie Jason Heyward can captivate the nation through October. An idea that is apparently not just an idle thought.

One On One with Pedro Lopez

New Savannah Sand Gnats Manager Pedro Lopez knows how to win. As the skipper for the Brooklyn Cyclones last season, the Mets affiliate claimed third place honors with a 45-30 record. This season, Lopez arrives in Savannah (along with nine of his Cyclones pitchers) in the hopes of ending Savannah’s playoff drought. After a fast 3-1 start, during which the team pitched back to back shutouts, Lopez sat down with our Ed DeVita to talk about his new ballclub and some of his expectations for 2010.
Ed DeVita: You guys are off to a nice start at 3-1. How important is that start to you and your ballclub?
Pedro Lopez: I think it’s great for them. They have been playing well. Actually, they have been playing well all through spring training. I’m just glad that we were able to maintain that once the season got started.
DeVita: You seemed to have been of balance during these first four games. You had some good hitting as well as some tremendous pitching. I know most of the pitchers were with you last year in Brooklyn; how much of an advantage does that give you knowing firsthand what these guys are capable of throwing?
Lopez: A lot. Usually at this time of the season when you first come out of spring training you are working with guys that you may not have ever seen pitch or have not been on my staff before. With guys you don’t know, it’s kind of hard to tell when they may be running out of gas or when he is reaching back and doing ok. We still have pitch counts for these guys, but there are still times that you are trying to see what each guy is capable of doing. I think that is an advantage that I have this season, at least at the start. To have so many guys that pitched for me last year allows me to know when they are at their best and when they may be in a little bit of trouble. To have four guys in the rotation that were with you before, just gives us an edge.
DeVita: You also spent some time at this ballpark before as a coach. I know we have talked before about some of the changes that have taken place since then, but does that familiarity also play into your favor or has the park changed so much that it doesn’t matter?
Lopez: I was here as a coach in 2008 and I got the opportunity then to see how this ballpark plays and how the ball travels here. There are certain aspects of the park that you can take advantage of and I told the guys that is exactly what we are going to do. There are not going to be a lot of home runs hit in this park, so we just have to go out and pitch well and play defense and be able to drive in runs when we have guys on base. Our pitchers know that no matter where they pitch, that they have to keep the ball down and throw strikes. If they fall behind in the count, chances are that if they make a mistake, that the ball will stay in the yard, but that doesn’t mean that they can leave the ball out over the middle of the plate.
DeVita: The guys seemed to have come out with a lot of energy to start the season. Do you feel that this is a long term characteristic of this team?
Lopez: Oh definitely. That’s one of the things that I am a big believer in. I want to create a good atmosphere for these guys to come in and work and have fun. I feel that we have done that and that we have impressed on them the importance of playing hard and competing every day. That’s something that I will continue to stress every day that we put on the uniform. When it comes to playing the game, I have told the guys that there will not be second-guessing by myself or the coaches. We may ask them what their thought process was when they made that pitch or the play or whatever, but I want them to feel that they can go out there and play baseball without the fear of making a mistake and then coming back to the dugout without having one of the coaches jump on them for that mistake. No, if you are playing baseball, then you are going to make errors or strikeout and you are going to give up a home run or make a base-running mistake. That’s the way the game is set up. Baseball is a game that is set up for failure. The key is to play through that failure and learn from it and that starts by playing without fear. I want them to play with confidence and enjoy the game and whatever happens, happens.
DeVita: I know that player development is a big part of what you do and what you believe; are you pleased to be able to get everyone involved during the first weekend?
Lopez: Absolutely. Let’s face it, there are some guys who are going to play more than others. That’s just the way it is. I am still going to try and keep everyone fresh and give everyone an opportunity to go out there and prove themselves and then hopefully I can find ways of getting them more playing time. I like doing that. For instance (first baseman) Jeff Flagg had a good game the other night but I just felt that it was a good day for him to sit. It was a day game and he can use that time to recover. I did the same thing with (Gnats catcher) Groenour. Even though those two guys had a good night the night before, I felt that it was good for them to sit, watch the game from the dugout and then come in ready to play today. This also plays a role in how they approach the game. They don’t have to fear being benched if they are not playing good because they are also going to sit sometimes when they are playing well. This helps eliminate the feelings of doubt that creep in when guys start to think about being benched if they are playing poorly. Once that happens, they dig a hole for themselves that is difficult for them to get out of.
DeVita: Is that also part of the learning process at this level? The fact that they can sit and watch and learn the game as an observer?
Lopez: Yes. Anything that we can do to help them learn and improve we will do. That’s what we are trying to do. Winning doesn’t happen by accident and winning ballclubs don’t come together by accident. I think that good ballclubs develop themselves into winning ballclubs. We have to come out with a positive attitude and a team game plan. We will be facing a pitcher tonight that we don’t know anything about, so we will watch and learn for the first three innings and then we can have a game plan as a team as to how we are going to approach him. If we can do that every night, keep a positive attitude and execute our plan, then more times than not we will be successful. That’s what our goal is – to continue to improve and win ballgames.

Summit Gymnasts Dazzle at Level Eight State Meet

Members of the Summit Gymnastics Academy in Savannah once again demonstrated why they are one of the finest gymnastics centers in the southeast with yet another impressive showing by the Level 8 gymnasts at their state meet.
Led by Nicole Clark, who won the All Around competition in her age bracket, the Summit team finished in sixth place from a field of 30 teams at the Level 8 State Meet on March 20-21 in Duluth, Georgia. In addition, five of the sixth girls from the Summit squad qualified for regionals against a field of more than 250 athletes.
“That’s exceptional to place sixth with only six girls on the team,” explained Shelly Davis of Summit Gymnastics. “They take the top four scores so for a team with only six athletes to do so well against other squads that have armies of 15-20 gymnasts is outstanding. They all kept it together and had their best meets of the season.”
“Nicole had the meet of her life,” said Davis. “She came in with the goal of winning the all around and she performed well and did just that. She came in psyched up with a plan on what to do on every event and did it.”
Joining Clark as a region qualifier were Jordan Pike, who made regionals for the first time and had her highest scores of the season, Ona Loper, Parrish Murphy and Savannah Jackson. Elise Wells did not qualify for regionals, but recorded her best score on the floor exercise with a score of 9.325. All six girls recorded nines on floor and the team placed sixth of 35 teams.
“Savannah had struggled earlier in the season with some falls and some inconsistency,” said Davis. “At this meet she put it all together and did a phenomenal job of hitting all four events and as a result getting her highest all around score of the season.”
“They all really put it all together at this meet,” added Davis. “Parrish Murphy came into the meet with a goal of scoring all nines and she made it.”
Ona Loper also continued her run of excellence by posting an overall fifth place finish. While the top 77 athletes head to the region meet as individual competitors, the top eight athletes represent the region as members of the region team, a distinction that Loper missed by the most narrow of margins.
“You can’t make regionals if you make mistakes and Ona made a mistake on bars when she simply tried to record the best score of her entire life,” said Davis. “She made a mistake because she was not holding anything back. She had scored as high as a 9.7 before on that event and her goal was a 9.9. She went for it and unfortunately made a minor mistake and it cost her. It cost her a chance to win the all around and a chance to make the all region team. If she had done her 9.7 bar routine she would have had the highest score of the entire meet.”
This shows that this is a very talented group,” added Davis. “It’s odd to have that many girls that are so talented and that performed so well. They exceeded our expectations in that regard. In gymnastics, it’s hit or miss almost like the flip of a coin. Even with the most talented and well trained kids, so many things can happen. They can make mistakes just like Olympians do. This is the type of event where all the kids are good and for them all to rise and perform the best that they have during the entire season is remarkable. That’s really all that I can ask for.”
“They just stepped up and did their best,” continued Davis. “That’s the hardest part about this sport. It all comes down to how you competed on that day. It doesn’t matter how talented you are or how hard you work in the gym. Sometimes some of my hardest workers have the hardest time competing. In this day and age you want to be able to say that the harder you work the better you the results, but in reality it comes down to how you compete. In our program, with us trying to prepare these kids for college, you have to be a strong competitor. Teams have to be able to count on you. For a lot of gymnasts it comes down to the mental aspect, if you can block everything out and focus and execute. From that standpoint, all of these young ladies did that exceptionally well at this event.”

AASU Breaks Out the Big Bats

When Armstrong Atlantic State University coach Ted Evans took his first look at his 2010 Pirates softball team, he quickly saw that they were young and energetic. After losing a great deal of his offensive production due to graduation, Evans felt that this season the Pirates would rely more on speed and slap hitting than they have in the past. Twenty nine games into the season and the Pirates look like they just keep on getting better. With a 6-2 win over St. Leo and a 2-1 victory over Alderson-Broaddas on the final day of the 2010 FMU Patriot Softball Classic on March 12, the Pirates extended their winning streak to ten games while elevating their overall mark to a staggering 21-8. Since that time, a pair of losses has done little to dampen the spirits of the team or of their head coach. “I think that we feel like we are right on track,” said Armstrong Atlantic State University head coach Ted Evans. “We know that we have a young team, but we also have a talented team. We are 21-8 right now and five of those losses are against nationally-ranked top 25 teams. Two of those losses were against the number one team and two other losses were against the number four team in the country. In addition, three of those four games were one-run losses. So we have shown that we can play and be right there with the best of them, but that we haven’t been able to put it all together yet. Championship teams find a way to win and right now as a young team, even though we’re talented and playing right with them, we just haven’t found that way to win.” One way that the Pirates have found to win is by flashing a great deal of power at the plate. Led by a quartet of players hitting above .350, the Pirates have blasted their way to an early 20-win season, no small feat when you consider that the squad finished with an overall mark of 27-23 last year. Second baseman April Jowers, the quintessential table-setter in the number two spot in the batting order, is leading the team in hitting with a robust .477 mark, while third baseman Baillie Temples has slugged her way to a .469 mark of her own, while also leading the squad with eight home runs and 32 runs batted in. Outfielders Erin Billingsley (.355, 5 home runs and 19 RBI) and Shelly Duff (.351, 2 homers and 15 runs batted in) have also jump-started the Pirates early season hit parade, giving the team a wealth of hot bats and confidence as they prepare to begin their conference schedule. “We have a couple of girls who can hit with power and they are all hitting right now,” stated Evans. “Baillie, right now, is just on fire,” said Evans. “If the season ended today, she would be a strong candidate for Player of the Year. She is just having an unbelievable season. Baillie is a true five star athlete, because she can steal a base for you, she can drop a bunt or she can knock it out of the park. You don’t get that kind of player very often.” With the Pirates swinging the bat as well as they have to begin the season, and with the emergence of freshman Megan Barnwell, who has already won conference player of the week honors this season, the team is brimming with confidence as they head into the meat of their conference schedule. Their coach likes what he sees coming together in front of him. “We are maturing and growing as a team,” added Evans. “It’s an exciting team. I think that the prospects for them are looking pretty good, not just for the future, but for this season as well.”

Going Yard - Take Tim Tebow

Do you hear that sound? That rumble in the distance? That sound that you hear is the gnashing of teeth that is emanating from the brain-trust of the Jacksonville Jaguars. With the NFL Draft nearly upon us, no team has, or perhaps ever has, as much scrutiny and pressure on a draft pick as does head coach Jack Del Rio this year.
Following a rebuilding season that saw the team miss the playoffs, the Jaguars find themselves in the lofty position of holding the tenth overall selection in this year’s draft. A number of teams would undoubtedly love to be where Jacksonville is sitting, but for Del Rio, that is where his headaches begin.
It is a simple question: Should the Jaguars draft Tim Tebow?
The answer is also simple: Yes.
Never before have all of the variables lined up in such a manner where a player was meant to energize a franchise and an entire city more than what Tebow’s arrival would mean to Jacksonville. Tebow grew up in the city before authoring a legendary career down the road at the University of Florida. He won championships and became a legend in the state of Florida. Never before has there been a “local boy makes good” story to the extent of Tebow’s impact on Jacksonville, and he is not even a member of the Jaguars.
The former Gator is so beloved in the area that Jaguars fans began bringing signs to the stadium pleading for Tebow two years ago. Owner Wayne Weaver has openly said that he’d like nothing more than to bring Tebow to Jacksonville. Who can argue? For an owner who has expressed his disdain for empty seats and local television blackouts on Sundays, drafting Tebow would instantly result in sell-out crowds (not to mention and unbelievable run on Jaguars number 15 jerseys, which incidentally began showing up at the stadium last season). Tebow would again prove that he is Superman by simply refusing to allow the Jaguars to move to Los Angeles. The city itself would be electrified if the team brought their favorite son home.
So what is the dilemma? Player personnel directors, scouts and NFL television analysts lament that Tebow has bad mechanics. They say that he can’t move well under center and that he is two or three years away before stepping onto the field, if, some add, he even remains a quarterback (one genius stated that he will become a linebacker in the NFL). I have to wonder what these guys are thinking. Here is the most prolific quarterback EVER in the history of college football. He has won everything that there is to win. He is an unbelievable leader and worker with unquestioned character, something that coaches would kill for at the quarterback position. If he is sitting right there for you to take, why not do so?
NFL draft gurus say that they need to see the ball leave his hand. What does that mean exactly? To me, if you want to see the ball leave Tebow’s hand, break out the tapes of him shredding my beloved Georgia Bulldogs and you will see a quarterback at the top of his game (or anyone else’s for that matter). He is a proven winner with a great deal of talent that doesn’t just go away just because he graduates from college.
Some argue that to take him at number ten is “too high” for Tebow. I don’t understand that. Why? You pick when it is your turn. To compound the issue, Jacksonville does not have a second round selection. If they pass on him at number ten, then there is little chance that the Heisman Trophy winner will still be on the board when the Jaguars pick in the third round. Some have speculated that Jacksonville will trade out of the pick and hope to land Tebow later in the draft. I just wonder why? Can you imagine the delirium that would follow if Del Rio selects Tebow in the first round? Who cares if Mel Kiper and Mike Mayock berate you on TV; You will now have a happy owner, an ecstatic city and a sold-out stadium every Sunday. Talk about an exciting environment and job security. If the team struggles, it won’t matter because eventually Tebow will get to step on the field. Heck, knowing his competitive streak, it would not surprise me to see Tebow on the field as a starter right off the bat – on special teams covering kicks. Never before will a crowd erupt on an opening kickoff tackle as they would in Jacksonville to see a hit and a fist pump from #15.
On the other hand, can you imagine what kind of noise will emanate from tailgate parties at the stadium on Draft Day Sunday if the Jaguars select anyone else with that pick? There is a rumor circulating that Del Rio is considering taking Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen if he is still there. To me, that would simply be coaching suicide. The fans will never forgive him or the ownership and will really stop supporting the soon-to-be California Jaguars. To take things a step further, imagine what it would be like on draft day to then see something like “The Tennessee Titans select, from the University of Florida, Tim Tebow.” Truly terrible.
For me, when the dust settles, it is the only logical choice – the Jaguars should take Tim Tebow with the tenth pick and begin a love affair with the city of Jacksonville. Let the “experts” slam the pick. What do they know anyway? If they were so smart, they would be on the sidelines coaching, instead of sitting in some sound studio watching the game on television. Make the pick and smile all the way to the bank, and believe it or not, to the playoffs within two years.